As the sole member of a limited liability company, you can designate a second signer for a business account. Select a senior-level employee or a professional who provides services or advises the company. Regardless of who you decide to add, review your financial processes to protect yourself against fraud and find out if you're covered for losses related to employee theft.

Manager-Managed LLC

You might decide to make the manager of your manager-managed single-member LLC a second signer on the company's bank account. If the manager writes most of the checks to pay bills and other expenses, designate someone other than the manager to reconcile the monthly bank statement to help protect against fraud. You can also set up your bank account to require two signatures on each check over a certain amount, such as $100.

Member-Managed LLC

If your single-member LLC is member-managed, or it's manager-managed, and you are the sole member and the manager, consider asking your accountant or attorney to act as a second signer on a bank account. While this might not be a practical arrangement if you're writing checks every day, it's a good backup to have in the rare case that you're not available and the company needs to issue a check. Or you might consider requiring two signatures if the check amount is unusually large, such as $5,000 or more.

Maintaining Personal and Business Separation

When you add a second signer to the company's account, don't add a spouse or family member who doesn't work for the company and isn't a formal company adviser. If you're involved in a dispute, and the other party challenges your limited liability status to gain access to your personal assets, having a relative who has no role in the company, but has access to the company's checking account, will not help you convince others that you've separated your personal and business finances.

Employee Theft and Dishonesty

Check your general business liability insurance policy to find out if you have coverage for employee crime/fraud. If you're not covered, consider adding a rider to your policy. According to an international loss consulting firm, the average claim for employee theft loss is $950,000, and the culprit is typically one of the most trusted employees. Pretend you are the second signer. Identify how easy it would be to steal money and how difficult it would be to discover the theft. Then change your procedures and controls accordingly.

About the Author

Steve McDonnell's experience running businesses and launching companies complements his technical expertise in information, technology and human resources. He earned a degree in computer science from Dartmouth College, served on the WorldatWork editorial board, blogged for the Spotfire Business Intelligence blog and has published books and book chapters for International Human Resource Information Management and Westlaw.